OF SOUTHERN AUSTRALIA. 157 



spondents, Mr. J. A. Hill. Mr. Hill says:— "On account of 

 its nocturnal habits little is known about it. Certainly it is 

 a most inoffensiA^e bird, and as far as my observation goes 

 lives chiefly on insects and mice. In the daytime it roosts 

 generally on a thick bough with another piece of dry limb 

 over it. The dry limb being of the same colour as the bird, 

 it would be easily passed without being noticed. This at 

 least helps to show that the bird not only knows its own 

 colour, but also the protection afforded by the dry piece of 

 wood above, as Hawks, Magpies, &c., would not dive at it 

 while against the limb. They generally roost in pairs, and in 

 the same place for weeks together. It does not fly until 

 forced by the throwing of a stick or in some other way. The 

 breeding season is about the last week in August or beginning 

 of September. Tlie nest is generally composed of a few green 

 leaves placed in a large fork, often not more than 10 feet from 

 the ground, the fork generally being flat, but sometimes a 

 little slanting. The nest is so shallow that on more than one 

 occasion I have seen the eggs roll out when the bird was 

 disturbed. The eggs are white in colour, and generally two 

 in number, but on one occasion I found three in a nest. It 

 seems to guard its young, for when forced to leave its nest it 

 will sit on a Umb near by, snapping its beak very savagely at 

 you. I have frequently heard the note of this species during 

 the day in the breeding season, but it is generally heard just 

 after sundown." 



To its menu I can add, from personal observation, centi- 

 pedes, tarantulas, crustaceans, and many hard-winged insects. 

 In fact, they are excellent destroyers of garden vermin, slugs 

 in particular. 



The plumage of the bird offers a clear case of protective 

 colouration, the mimicry of the bough on which the bird 

 rests, usually lengthwise, being perfect. On the 19th October 

 1894, I found a nest containing two grey-downed young, with 



